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YouTube clips describing dangerous or emotionally painful "jokes" have been banned from the platform.
This decision comes in response to so-called "challenges" that sometimes resulted in death or injury.
The video sharing site owned by Google said that this type of material had "no place on YouTube".
However, the firm appears not to apply the existing rules on harmful content.
A Buzzfeed report explained how images showing, or alluding to, bestiality were still appearing on the site – despite the commitment made in April to remove the content.
Some of the videos had attracted several million views. YouTube said it "was working aggressively to implement our monetization policies to eliminate the incentive for these abuses."
Cross the line
But applying its new rules on jokes can prove even more difficult, given the ambiguity of what may or may not be considered harmful.
"YouTube is home to many beloved viral challenges and pranks," added the FAQ section of the site.
"Having said that, we've always had policies to make sure that what's funny does not go as far as it's harmful or dangerous.
"Our community guidelines prohibit content that encourages dangerous activities that could cause serious harm, and today clarify what it means for dangerous challenges and jokes."
From now on, the site has stated that it will not allow videos with "jokes involving a perceived danger of serious injury".
This includes pranks where someone is led to believe that he is in grave danger, even if no real threat existed.
Trauma in the child
The website adds: "We also do not allow jokes that cause severe emotional distress in children, which means something so serious that the child could be traumatized for life."
YouTube has reported working closely with child psychologists on what could be a traumatic experience. He did not publish a complete list, but added that it included scenarios in which a child is led to believe that their parents are dead.
The new rules follow several cases of jokes and stunts seriously misguided at best and fatal at worst.
In May, Monalisa Perez, a 20-year-old Minnesota woman, was sentenced to six months in prison after shooting her boyfriend, Mario Ruiz. The couple had hoped that the video of their waterfall, in which an encyclopedia would be supposed to protect Mr. Ruiz, would become viral on YouTube.
Also last year, the American Association of Poison Control Centers reported an increase in the number of disease cases related to the ingestion of detergent following a craze caused by the consumption of pods containing laundry detergent.
This prompted the manufacturer of this product, Procter and Gamble, to seek the help of football star Rob Gronkowski public awareness campaign on social media.
More recently, a challenge inspired by a Netflix Show Birdbox scene was to conduct activities – such as driving – blindfolded. We know that at least one person has been crushed as a result.
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